Nailers agree to terms with Flanigan

WHEELING, W.Va. – The Wheeling Nailers, ECHL affiliate of the Pittsburgh Penguins and Montreal Canadiens, announced that the club has signed forward Ryan Flanigan for the 2013-14 season.

Flanigan, 25, is coming off of his first full season of professional hockey, which he split between the Greenville Road Warriors and the Central Hockey League’s Wichita Thunder. After a brief two-game stint in Greenville to start the year, Flanigan was reassigned by the American Hockey League’s Connecticut Whale to Wichita, where he was able to total 15 points (4g-11a) in 29 games. In late January, he returned to the Road Warriors, and proceeded to record at least one point in six of his next 10 games. He appeared in 30 games with Greenville last season, registering 18 points (5g-13a) and 21 penalty minutes.

The Rochester, N.Y. native began his path to the pros with the EJHL’s Bay State Breakers, where he totaled 58 points (29g-29) in 81 games over two seasons from 2006-08, before advancing to the NCAA and Merrimack College. Flanigan spent four years with the Warriors, appearing in 131 games, scoring 79 points (34g-45a). Flanigan made his pro debut in 2011-12, appearing in four games with the Hamilton Bulldogs, tallying two points (1g-1a).